Motor vehicle steering wheels are known which have both an air bag and switches or push button keys with which it is possible, for example, to set a station on the radio or even to set its volume without operating the radio itself, which is usually mounted in the dashboard to the side of the driver, and without thus being distracted from the road traffic.
The increasing complexity of road traffic requires increasing driver information about his surroundings. The quantity of information which is transmitted to the driver of the vehicle is therefore increasing. On the other hand, the capacity of the driver to take in information is limited. The driver also has to concentrate on essential driving functions, which also requires increasing concentration because of the increasing amount of road traffic.
For this reason, driver assistance systems for sensing hazardous situations and driver guidance systems are being increasingly used in motor vehicles. It is known to make the driver aware of hazardous situations by means of visual systems in the dashboard or by means of audio systems. The driver guidance systems are equipped with a display which is also arranged in the dashboard. Driver assistance systems are known, for example, from German laid-open patent application 198 21 163 A1 and from European patent application 0 640 903 A1.
The disadvantage of the visual systems is that they are arranged in the dashboard on the other side of the driver, so that in particular when the driver is considering the display of a driver guidance system he cannot pay attention to the road traffic.